Houston sues firefighters pension board to open its books

By Chris Moran |
May 16, 2012
| Updated: May 16, 2012 11:41pm

The city of Houston sued the firefighters pension board in state District Court on Wednesday in an effort to pry open the retirement system's books for a look at supporting data behind the $61 million annual bill it sends to City Hall.

"We need access to this very basic information if we are to be able to protect taxpayers who foot the bills and the employees who deserve fair, financially secure retirements," Mayor Annise Parker said in a statement released by her office. "I do not want a situation where we must choose between vital city services and paying retirement benefits. We have to be able to accurately plan for the future. It is a critical piece in our long-term budget process. Since our repeated requests for the information have been turned down, we are left with no alternative other than relief in the court system."

The chairman of the Houston Firefighters' Relief and Retirement Fund said he had not yet seen the suit and had no immediate comment. In an op-ed in the Chronicle in March, however, Todd Clark insisted that the city gets all the information it needs to make budget projections. He wrote that the Parker administration sought information on individual firefighters' benefits and that handing over such information would violate pensioners' privacy rights.

The mayor had telegraphed the suit in February when she told the Chronicle editorial board that the city probably would have to sue the firefighters, police and municipal employees pension systems for actuarial data. The administration has singled out the firefighters' pension board as particularly uncooperative as budget officials grapple with annual city costs for the three pension systems that are projected to rise by $100 million during the next three years.

The Legislature created Houston's firefighters pension system and gives it the authority to unilaterally establish what taxpayers owe the system each year. Fund representatives are not even obligated to meet with city officials to discuss possible changes to the system. Parker pushed for legislation in 2011 to force the pension board to the table, but could not get a single legislator to carry a bill on the matter. She has said she plans to renew her efforts in advance of the 2013 session.